| ABOUT LNG & RENEWABLES America is at a crossroads. If we go down the familiar, well-worn path, we'll continue to invest in dead-end, fossil fuels. If we go down the less-worn path, we'll invest in renewable energy and conservation. The choice we make here can make all the difference. The time to become educated on this issue and to take action is now—because proponents of fossil fuels are moving at lightening speed to promote liquefied natural gas, or LNG. If the big oil, energy and mining companies that are promoting LNG have their way, America will be spending hundreds of billions of dollars on building large terminals, refineries and ships, to bring LNG to America from foreign countries. Though LNG is the cleanest of all fossil fuels, it still pollutes and it still causes global warming. It's extraction, shipment, importation and use, will present new environmental, safety and security risks. Importing LNG from foreign countries will require additional American military preparedness. Multinational energy companies want the United States to spend hundreds of billions of dollars investing in LNG, a fossil fuel that pollutes, causes global warming, disasterous safety risks, military concerns, increase our balance of trade deficit and which will eventually run out. They have support of a substantial number of elected leaders, starting in the White House with Bush and Cheney, through federal agencies, and into Congress. Rather quickly, ordinary Americans will pay for this. The school teacher, bus driver, stock broker or store manager will pay for it—with their investment dollars and retirement funds. They'll pay for it with purchase contracts that will be paid for by utility rate payers. They'll pay for it with tax subsidies that go to the energy industry. They'll pay again with their health. Rather than investing this money into a dirty, dead-end fuel, the price of which can be easily manipulated, we should ensure that our money is invested in a renewable energy portfolio and conservation. If we do this, the net energy we tap into will last forever. It won't be subject to market manipulation. It won't pollute and damage our health, our property, our forests and farms. It will free us from being dependent on foreign oil. It will save us from undue safety and security risks here and around the world. Every day, renewable energy is becoming more practical. By 2017, California may get 30% of its energy from renewable. That figure could be higher. Moreover, renewable energy systems are manufactured and installed here in America. The labor and money needed to put up these systems stays right here. For America, the choice is dramatically clear. We all need to stand together and make sure that our elected officials don't make the 100 billion dollar LNG mistake. We need to champion a future in which our new energy needs are satisfied with renewable energy and conservation. Read more about LNG risks in Long Beach, Wilmington and San Pedro. |
